If you are looking for a high energy, low-impact exercise that is enjoyable to do, slide into the rink and ice skate for fitness. This may seem like child’s play or a winter pass-time, but believe it or not ice-skating can be a great cardiovascular workout for both kids and adults all year round. There is no age limit or age restrictions for ice skating. No one is too young or too old to get a great cardiovascular ice skating workout. Ice-skating helps build coordination and balance, strengthens your leg muscles, and also gives great cardiovascular workout. Winter is the most difficult time of year to get out and exercise, but using a fun winter sport for fitness, you will be able to have fun doing something you enjoy while getting great exercise.
Ice skating has a low impact on the joints in comparison to activities such as jogging, yet the calories you burn in one hour of ice skating is about the same as one hour of jogging. This activity builds and tones in places that you wouldn’t believe including the hamstrings, the calves, the buttocks, and abdomen. A secret to getting a better work out is holding the arms out for balance while you skate. Don’t worry about looking like an amateur; holding your arms out for balance actually helps increase the muscle in your shoulders, triceps, biceps and back, as well as helps to increase the heart rate. Ice-skating is an especially great workout for adults. It helps to maintain balance and endurance and works as a great alternative to bicycling, jogging, or walking. Not to mention that the gym can become a boring venture, tedious, and even burdensome to most. Skating is a challenging, yet fun sport that keeps people coming back to try it again and again.
Here are some tips for using ice-skating as a part of your daily exercise. Always layer. It is important to always wear multiple layers of clothing while on the ice. This allows for easy temperature adjustment. Stretch before you start skating. Try to stretch muscles such as your calves, hamstrings, and quads to reduce the chance of injury on the ice. This also lessens soreness and promotes flexibility. Warm up before you get into your activity. This can be a five to ten minute lap around the rink. This gets you heart pumping and prepared for your skate. Also, cool down after you are finished skating. This can also be a five to ten minute slow lap around the rink. This gives the heart an opportunity to cool down and slowly return back to its normal pace.
What’s great about ice-skating is that if you have an indoor rink nearby, you can enjoy this fun, relaxed form of exercise all year round!